ROCK ISLAND -- The Augustana Vikings women's volleyball team will return home for their next contest for the first time in over two weeks this upcoming weekend as they get set to host the annual Viking Classic from inside the Carver Center. Augie will play four matches over the course of September 16-17.

On Friday, the Vikings begin the weekend with a matchup against the Blackburn Beavers at 5:30 p.m. Blackburn currently sits at 1-3 on the season. The Beavers were defeated by the Knox Prairie Fire in their most recent outing by a score of 3-1. Augie defeated Knox in their season-opener by a final of 3-2. Friday will be the sixth meeting all-time with between the two programs, with Augustana holding a 4-1 lead in the all-time series. The teams last met in 2013 in a neutral-site match in St. Louis, Mo., resulting in a 3-0 win for the Vikings.

Following their contest with Blackburn, the Vikings will take on the Monmouth Fighting Scots to round out Friday's action. Monmouth enters the weekend with a 3-5 record, recently snapping a three-match losing streak with a 3-0 win over Principia. Friday will be the 56th meeting between the Vikings and Scots, with Augie leading the all-time series 30-23-2. The Vikings won their last encounter a season ago in Monmouth, a 3-0 victory. Augustana has won five straight meetings dating back to 2013.

Saturday's action begins with a 10:30 a.m. matchup with the Marian Sabres, who enter the weekend with a 1-8 record. The Sabres were defeated in their first eight contests this year, but recently won their conference opener with a 3-0 score over Alverno. Marian and Augustana have one common opponent this season in Cornell. The Sabres were defeated by the Rams 3-0, while the Vikings picked up a 3-0 road win in their meeting with Cornell. This will be just the third encounter all-time between the two programs, with each grabbing one win apiece. Their last meeting came in 2016, a 3-0 victory for Augustana in Rock Island.

Augie will round out the Viking Classic around 12:30 p.m. with a showdown against the Luther Norse. Luther currently sits at 3-4 on the season, dropping their conference opener to Coe 3-0 in their most recent outing. Augustana is 4-5 all-time against Luther, but defeated the Norse 3-0 the last time they met in 2019.

Live video and stat links for the weekend can be found here.